ISLAND GIRL by LYNDA SIMMONS

REVIEW OF

ISLAND GIRL

by

LYNDA SIMMONS

It is a question that makes you think – What Would You Do If You Were Told You Had Alzheimer’s – it is also a question that Lynda Simmons answers, at least for her protagonist Ruby Donaldson.

Ruby has just learned that she has a new friend, Big Al, (Alzheimer’s) and her immediate thoughts are of her family. How can she prepare them, protect them, and still maintain her independence? However, her family is estranged and stubbornly uncooperative. Even after they find out that she is ill, they find it hard to be sympathetic. Raising yet another question-- when a terminal illness hits is it really that easy to forgive and forget the misdeeds of the past.

Lynda delves into all those questions with skill, heart, and thoughtful reality. Her characters are people you know, the family dynamics genuine, but with any terminal illness, there is no happy ending. Yet Lynda Simmons gives you an ending that you will find satisfying, because it is selfless and filled with the warmth of genuine compassion. It brought tears to my eyes and required a handful of tissues to get through, but it was one of the most beautiful stories I have ever read of love and forgiveness, while staying true to the strength of its main character.

I highly recommend ISLAND GIRL. Ruby Donaldson will be someone you will recall fondly as a friend who touched your heart because Lynda Simmons created her that way.

Yolanda Renee
02/24/2011

To learn more about Lynda Simmons and her book ISLAND GIRL go to www.lyndasimmons.com

Join us Thursday afternoon for a fascinating conversation.

Just follow this link to listen via your computer:



http://www.blogtalkradio.com/yolandarenee/2011/03/03/a-conversation-with-author-lynda-simmons-1

Or call (347) 215-9536 – you can listen to the show or ask Lynda a question. All shows are downloadable from iTunes.

ELLEN M KOZAK - PUBLISHING LAW

Everything You’ve Ever Wanted To Know-- Seriously-- About the Business End of Being a Writer

(Including how to avoid being scammed!)

Attorney Ellen M. Kozak appears on Conversations with Renee – Thursday, September 3, 2009 @ 9:00 PM EST.

Attorney Ellen M. Kozak practices copyright, publishing, entertainment, and media law in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Her clients include publishers and literary agents as well as authors. Ellen is also an author herself-- FROM PEN TO PRINT The Secrets of Getting Published Successfully – and – EVERY WRITER’S GUIDE TO COPYRIGHT AND PUBLISHING LAW, along with two pseudonymous novels and more than 500 articles in publications as diverse as Travel+Leisure, Writer’s Digest, USA Today, Editors Only and The Journal of Information Ethics. FROM PEN TO PRINT was voted Best Book-length Work of Nonfiction for 1990 by the Council for Wisconsin Writers.

EVERY WRITER’S GUIDE TO COPYRIGHT AND PUBLISHING LAW:

This book gives down-to-earth, easy-to-understand answers to questions like: What is a copyright? How long does it last? Can you inherit it? How do you determine who owns the copyright? What defines “fair use” of a copyrighted work? How can you determine when something is in the “public domain”? How is material on the Internet copyrighted? Now in its 3rd edition, this book by Ellen Kozak, herself both a writer and a media lawyer, answers these and other pertinent questions in clear, accessible language. For anyone involved in the book business—writers, editors, publishers, agents, lawyers, scholars, and even critics with questions about intellectual property—this authoritative and accessible disk reference is truly indispensable.

FROM PEN TO PRINT: The Secrets of Getting Published Successfully

This indispensable and eminently readable guide is a source of complete information for writers on the practical business of getting published, whether the medium is books, magazines, newspapers, scripts, or even greeting cards. It answers your questions about everything from queries and submissions to contracts, copyrights, galleys, copy editing, publicity, and much more. Ellen Kozak shows you how to deal with writer’s block and keeps you going with practical suggestions on developing ideas, choosing a writing course, and fighting procrastination. You will learn about publishing from the inside and find out how you can be a part of it, while preserving your rights and your sanity.

Ellen M. Kozak practices copyright, publishing, and media law in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She is the author of nine books (some of them novels published under a pseudonym) and hundreds of articles that have appeared in publications as diverse as "USA Today," the "Wall Street Journal," "Campaigns & Elections," "Travel+Leisure," "Milwaukee Magazine," the "Milwaukee Journal Sentinel," "Toastmaster," and the "Fresno Bee," as well as radio essays for WUWM radio.

Ms. Kozak is a frequent speaker on legal topics and on publishing and copyright law to groups around the country. She is a graduate of Barnard College and the University of Wisconsin Law School, and holds a Certificate in Law of the Media from the NYU School of Law.

Her book "From Pen to Print: The Secrets of Getting Published Successfully" was named best Wisconsin nonfiction book of 1990 by the Council for Wisconsin Writers.

WHAT OTHERS SAY ABOUT HER WORK:

“Do yourself a favor. Read this book even before you start writing.” ---Milwaukee Journal

“This is the good stuff . . . . It covers a lot of lively ground.” ---The Writers Alliance

“From Pen to Print is a resource book that every beginning and experienced writer should place on their reading list.” ---Textbook Authors Association

Join us on BLOG TALK RADIO

WHEN ZOMBIES ATTACK

WHEN ZOMBIES ATTACK

 Tales of Horror & Romance

A tale of two covers

Old and New

WHEN ZOMBIES ATTACK

TALES OF HORROR & ROMANCE

When Zombies Attack is a collection of short stories, flash fiction, and poetry with over thirty individual pieces. Starting with zombies and ending with a flesh eater. There is horror, romance, murder, and mystery, a little for every reader.

•   Can a survivalist survive a zombie hoard?
•   Can an angel in training beat the Devil?
•    Would you voluntarily jump into the fires of hell?
•    Is murder ever forgivable?
•    Will love finally triumph over death!
•    On Halloween night, a sexy witch gets more than she planned for.

When Zombies Attack is a fun romp through all things forbidden, love with a touch of horror, and all those things that scare us!

Excerpt: When Zombies Attack

“What are you doing?” Mike asked as he came through the living room rubbing his hair dry with a towel.

“Reading this book. Jonathan Maberry’s latest novel, Zombie CSU the Forensics of the Living Dead.

“You’re kidding. I thought you found the subject boring”

“I do. How can you read this drivel? He interviews the world’s top authorities on how to survive a zombie attack – as though there will ever be such a thing. And people like you read it. You need to grow up Mike, really!”

“Angie, Angie, Angie.” Mike shook his head and rolled his eyes. “They’ve proven zombies exist – voodoo rituals and all – so they do exist.”

“Drug induced maybe – but none of them have ever eaten a human being!”

Mike sat down on the couch next to her. He kissed her lightly on the forehead. “Okay so maybe it is a little juvenile, but it’s a hobby, besides you collect guns and call yourself a survivalist. What are you getting ready for World War III?”

Angie threw her arms around his neck. “Touché, we’re even. I’m a survivalist and you’re a zombie hunter. We’ll call it even. I will admit the book is well written. It caught my attention because of the survivalist mentality of it.”

She kissed him soundly. “Have you finished it?”

“No, I just got it. I'm not a voracious reader like you.”

“Well, the best arsenal against them is the gun. Shoot them in the head, besides they move slow enough – it shouldn’t be that difficult to survive an attack.”

Mike smiled broadly. “Now that’s what I like to hear. I’m going to Lancaster tonight. Gary and the guys are having a beer, zombie fest. We’re watching NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD. Why don’t you join us, it should be fun!”

“No, you go ahead. If it weren’t for the farting contest you guys get into, I might have considered it.”

He laughed. “I can ask them to forgo the contest.”

“And ruin their chance to embarrass me, I don’t think so. They would agree until they got drunk and then any promise would be out the window. No thanks.”

Mike picked up his keys, kissed her goodbye, and walked out the door. Angie curled up on the couch and continued reading.

Several hours later Angie was startled awake by the fall of her book to the floor, she went to the kitchen to get a drink. She returned to the couch and picked up the remote. She muted the sound and prepared to channel surf but all she found was news. The clock chimed midnight. The news should be over, what happened to Saturday Night Live? She kept channel surfing but even HGTV had the news on. She unmuted the sound. Guess I should find out what the big deal is.

Mary Jane Finney was reporting. “Police are telling all residents of Pennsylvania to stay away from Three Mile Island. Something has gone terribly wrong – and that’s all they will say. On the eastern side of the Susquehanna River, the military is patrolling. No one is getting in and no one is getting out. The status of those in the red zone is unknown.” Angie muted the television as she tried to digest the news.

Want to know what happens next?

When Zombies Attack a book of short stories and flash fiction and it's now 

onAMAZON KINDLE UNLIMITED!

This was written on a dare from Mike Lombardo the producer and director of Reel Splatter Films, and also as an homage to Jonathan Maberry author of Zombie CSU. Please check out the work of both men. Mike Lombardo the awesome zombie producer and Jonathan Maberry a great horror author.

Thank you for reading.